The Hero
by heartlaced
Summary: [SoraxKairi] My retelling of the scene before the last fight with Heartless!Riku, and the scenes after. Spoilers if you haven't played KH. [FINISHED]
1. Too Late

Sora burst through the wide doors. There were three crystal coffins on each side of the long hall, a girl in each. But Sora didn't even glance at them; there was only one girl he was concerned with.

He ran past them all, willing himself to go faster. Donald and Goofy struggled to keep up with him, but they couldn't; no one could compete with his determination to see her, his worry that he wouldn't make it.

There were steps; Sora took them two at a time. He prayed that he had made it on time, that he wasn't to late to save her. As he rounded the curve in the staircase and looked out onto the platform at the top, he didn't notice the Final Keyhole, or the boy sitting upon it's frame.

Sora had eyes for only her.

"Kairi!"

Her lifeless body lay there on the cold stone floor, no breath streaming from her lips. She was completely still, and she seemed so pale and fragile, lying there. Time seemed to stop as Sora moved towards her, slowly at first, then bursting into a run.

It seemed like hours, but he was at her side within seconds. Gently, Sora put his arm around her and raised her up a bit, holding her in his arms. Her skin was like ice, and as Sora held her, his mind was filled with one question: why wouldn't she wake up?

"Kairi! Kairi! Open your eyes!" he cried, gently shaking her, but it was no use.

"It's no use," a voice said. "That girl has lost her heart. She cannot wake up." The voice's tone was so flat, so monotonic, it seemed as if they were unable to feel emotion.

Sora spun around, and that's when he finally saw him. "Riku!" Sora shouted.

It was Riku, but he seemed different, somehow. He had changed his outfit, but there was more to it than that. Something about Riku was strange, out of place… and something inside Sora told him that this wasn't Riku.

"What? You…," Sora murmured. "You're not Riku."

Ignoring Sora, Riku glanced at Kairi. "The Keyhole cannot be completed so as long as the last princess of heart still sleeps."

"The princess…? Kairi's a princess?" Sora asked, lowering Kairi's body back down and standing up. He took a step forward. What did Riku mean? Kairi wasn't a princess… was she? And what was that about a Keyhole? He looked at the huge portal in front of him, seeing it for the first time.

What was this thing? That shape looked familiar… the Heartless emblem! This was somehow connected to the Heartless! Why was Riku…

Riku jumped off the golden frame and slowly fell through the air, landing on both feet in front of the Keyhole. "Yes," he said, answering Sora, "and without her power, the Keyhole will remain incomplete. It is time she awakened."

Sora didn't understand what Riku was saying, but he knew one thing: this wasn't Riku. "Whoever you are, let Riku go! Give him back his heart!" he demanded, clenching his fists.

"But first," Riku said, a triumphant look on his face," you must give the princess back her heart."

"Unh…," Sora grunted. He felt strange… his heart was hurting. The pain forced him to his knees, one hand gripping the fabric beneath which his heart lay.

Riku leaned forward. His tone growing eager, he said, "Don't you see? The princess's heart is responding. It has been there all along. Kairi's heart rests within you!"

Through his pain, Sora managed to look up. "Kairi… Kairi's inside me?"

"I know all that there is to know," Riku said, lifting his head and glaring icily down at Sora, as if he was superior to the Keyblade wielder.

"Tell me! Who are you!" Sora exclaimed. Now he was sure that this wasn't Riku!

"It is I," Riku said, spreading his arms, "Ansem, the seeker of darkness." He walked towards Sora, brandishing a Keyblade. Donald charged at him, but Riku pushed Donald away, onto the steps. The duck tried a second attack, but was blocked by a barrier.

Riku came to a stop in front of Sora. He poised himself in an attacking position, his Keyblade ready. "So, I shall release you now, Princess. Complete the Keyhole with your power. Open the door, lead me into everlasting darkness!" he cried, bringing his Keyblade down on Sora.

"_Sora!"_

Her voice snapped Sora out of his trance. He quickly drew his own Keyblade, blocking Riku's just in time. "Forget it!" Sora said angrily, forcing Riku back. "There's no way you're taking Kairi's heart!"


	2. Sacrifice

"Raaah!" Sora charged at Riku, who was still recovering from the last attack. He hit his friend straight on, and Sora knew that this was the final blow; the fight was over.

Riku stumbled back, dropping his Keyblade. He looked up at Sora, eyes filled with disbelief. He seemed to be saying, i _"How could a weakling like you defeat me?"_ /i He began to fade away, and within seconds was gone.

"Riku!" Sora cried out, but his friend had disappeared. He stood there for a minute, contemplating what had happen.

"Sora!" The voice snapped him out of his trance. It was Donald, who was running towards him now that Riku was defeated and his barrier gone. Goofy was coming, too, from the other side. "Sora, look!" Donald exclaimed upon reaching Sora. He pointed towards to Keyhole.

Goofy looked too, and said, startled, "The… the Keyhole!"

i _A Keyhole… in that case, I have to seal it,_ /i Sora thought, approaching the Keyhole, Donald and Goofy following close behind. He thrust out his Keyblade, ready for the all-too-familiar beam of light to shoot out, to hear the clicking noise that meant the heart of this world was secure… but nothing happened.

"It won't work!" Goofy exclaimed. "The Keyhole's not finished yet!"

"What can we do?" Sora asked, frustrated.

Goofy looked over at Kairi's sleeping form. "Maybe we've gotta wake Kairi up."

Sora looked up, then over at Kairi. "… I think you're right," he said. "If we can free her heart… but… but how?" His eyes searched about for anything that might give them a clue, and they fell upon the Dark Keyblade. "A Keyblade that unlocks people's hearts… I wonder."

"Sora?" Goofy asked.

Sora walked over to the fallen Keyblade, and picked it up. It was lighter than his, he noticed, but had a weird feeling about it.

Goofy realized what Sora was doing, and cried out, "Sora, hold on!"

"No, wait!" Donald yelled, as he too caught on to Sora's plan.

Gripping the Keyblade, Sora turned and grinned at his friends. Without any hesitation, he thrust the Keyblade into his heart. It took less than a minute, but time seemed to barely move as Sora sacrificed himself.

The Keyblade began to glow. That glow changed into seven streams of light. Six of them flew out to where the six Princess of Heart lay sleeping, and the seventh spiraled downwards into Kairi, illuminating her, if only for a moment.

Sora himself began to glow, and slowly, fall. His safety didn't matter anymore. All that he cared about was restoring Kairi to life, giving her back her heart. As he began to disappear, a thought crossed Sora's mind: i _I wish I could have seen her… one last time._ /i 

"Sora… Sora!" Donald shouted, distraught.

Beside Sora, the girl lying on the ground began to stir. A finger twitched. Her eyelids flickered, then opened completely. Kairi awoke.

She sat up slowly, then stopped as she saw him.

"Sora!"

His head turned slightly, and he saw her get to her feet and run towards him, arms reached out, as if to catch him. A slight smile hovered on Sora's lips as he faded away completely, seconds before Kairi's arms could reach him.

Donald and Goofy ran over, while Kairi sank to the ground. "Sora! Come back, Sora!" Donald cried.

Kairi sat there, staring at her hands. Sora was gone. i _My voice can't reach him anymore. My hands can't touch him anymore._ /i Tears streamed from her eyes as she realized that she'd never see Sora again.

Hopeless, she looked up towards the heavens. "Sora… are you really…" For a moment, she thought he was truly gone, but that quickly changed. Kairi was stubborn, and she wasn't going to give up on Sora: not now, not ever.

"No." She got to her feet. "It can't be. I won't let him go!"

"What's… what's happening?" Sora opened his eyes to darkness. All around him, an endless night. "Falling… falling… into darkness." He closed his eyes again.

This time, when he opened them, he was somewhere different. He was… back in the Great Hall? He was! The Keyhole was behind him; the Sleeping Princesses before him. But where was Kairi? He had to find her! Sora dashed down the steps and through the open doors of the hall.

He continued on, until he reached the Entrance Hall. As he entered it, he saw Kairi, Donald, and Goofy at the base of the stairs.

"Kairi, hurry!" Goofy was saying.

The girl shook her head. "I can't leave them behind!"

Kairi! Sora was overjoyed to see her again. He bounded over to the steps, and quickly ran down them. Donald saw him, and barred his wand.

"We can't stay here!" Donald said, nodding towards Sora.

Goofy saw him, too. "A Heartless is after us!"

A Heartless? Sora figured that there must be one close by, so he rushed across the floor, wanting to protect Kairi from it.

"I'll take care of him!" Donald lunged at him with his wand, and Sora barely avoided it. What? Why was Donald attacking him? Didn't they know it was him? Didn't they recognize him?

"Confounded Heartless!" Donald muttered. "Get lost, will ya?"

Sora suddenly realized that they were talking about him. He was a Heartless! So that's what happened when he gave up his heart… he should have realized it sooner! But… how could he tell his friends that it was him?

He tried to speak, but nothing came out. This was bad! At this rate, they'd keep attacking him, and Sora knew he couldn't evade them forever! And he didn't want to hurt them, so attacking wasn't an option!

A footstep. Kairi moved forward, her eyes fixed on the small Heartless. It seemed so much like him… "Sora? Is that you?"

"Uh-oh!" Goofy exclaimed suddenly, pointing. Heartless were popping up like crazy, surrounding them. Goofy took his battle position, and he and Donald launched an attack against the Heartless, getting farther away from Kairi and Sora.

Kairi held the Shadow Heartless in her arms. She knew in her heart that this was Sora, and she wasn't about to lose him again. "This time, I'll protect you," she whispered.

Goofy hit a Heartless with his shield, and while it was disappearing, glanced back. A mob of Heartless surrounded Kairi and Sora. Their bodies faded, merging into pure darkness. "Kairi!" Goofy cried out.

The Heartless surged forward, hungry for hearts to feed upon. Kairi squeezed the Shadow, and closed her eyes, bracing herself for the attack that was sure to come.

But it didn't. A blinding light emitted from Sora, destroying the Heartless. When it faded, it wasn't a Shadow that Kairi was clutching onto, but Sora himself. He hugged Kairi, and she hugged him back, not wanting the moment to end.

Sora opened his eyes and gazed down upon her. "Kairi… thank you."


End file.
